As the value and use of information continues to increase, individuals and businesses seek additional ways to process and store information. One option available to users is information handling systems. An information handling system generally processes, compiles, stores, and/or communicates information or data for business, personal, or other purposes thereby allowing users to take advantage of the value of the information. Because technology and information handling needs and requirements vary between different users or applications, information handling systems may also vary regarding what information is handled, how the information is handled, how much information is processed, stored, or communicated, and how quickly and efficiently the information may be processed, stored, or communicated. The variations in information handling systems allow for information handling systems to be general or configured for a specific user or specific use such as financial transaction processing, airline reservations, enterprise data storage, or global communications. In addition, information handling systems may include a variety of hardware and software components that may be configured to process, store, and communicate information and may include one or more computer systems, data storage systems, and networking systems.
To improve reliability and fault-protection, information handling systems often employ redundant data storage mechanisms. One type of redundant data storage mechanism is a Redundant Array of Independent Nodes (RAIN). In RAIN implementations, data is replicated to a plurality of nodes (e.g., servers or other information handling systems). Typically, a software management program manages the cluster of RAIN nodes, tracking each copy of the data such that, in the event of failure of one node, the cluster can further replicate data as necessary to maintain a desired level of redundancy.
Typically, objects stored in a RAIN and the replicas of such objects are randomly distributed among the various nodes of the RAIN in order to provide the desired level of redundancy. Thus, to provide redundancy, all nodes of the RAIN must remain fully powered at all times. This need to keep all nodes in a fully-powered state often requires a significant amount of power consumption by the RAIN.